The present invention is concerned with mechanism in a machine for applying adhesive tape to cartons having their end and side flaps folded inward, to anchor those folded flaps securely. It is an old practice in the concerned art to provide such machines which receive from an operator's hands or equipment he controls cartons with their flaps folded over contained contents, and to apply to each carton adhesive or pressure sensitive tape for securely anchoring in closed positions the folded carton flaps. These machines are equipped with tape applying assembly units each of which frequently has two tape applicator rollers that are pivotally mounted for swing. In some the unit has a single first roller projecting into a path of transport of each carton through the machine and with this roller supporting an end of the tape with its adhesively coated face opposed to the leading end wall of the on-coming carton for adherence anchorage thereto. Then, as the carton advances, it swings this first applicator roller forward to lower it out of the way of the oncoming carton while wiping the adhesive tape to anchorage of carton surfaces, i.e., first a portion of the carton leading end wall surface, then along the longitudinal top (or bottom as the case may be) to lap the opposed edges of the infolded side flaps and finally to leave a trailing end section to lap up (or down as the case may be) against the trailing carton end wall by one of another pair of applicator rollers.
The pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 645,718, filed Dec. 31, 1975 for Tape Applying Mechanisms of Carton Sealing Machines, of Saul Warshaw, Winton Loveland, and Horst J. Hanemann discloses appreciable details of such a tape applying machine which is advantageously equipped with control mechanisms and sub-assemblies of the present invention to lower an elevator head thereof to a minimum elevation whereby its lateral head beam and a control carried by its back end are in the path of any advancing carton fed thereto to cause this head beam and control to rise enough for the advancing carton to be transported forward to beneath this beam and then the latter to move down to rest thereon for loading this advancing carton. That patent application also disclosed certain control means at the exit end of the machine which are here important to the present invention, and the disclosure thereof is embodied herein by reference.
It is an object of the present invention to provide such head raising and lowering mechanism which effectively loads each carton as it advances through the machine and then, uniquely, as the taped carton begins to exit from beneath the loading head beam for discharge from the machine this beam is raised momentarily to relieve the exiting carton from such load, thus avoiding any tendency of such loading on the back end of the carton as the latter moves from therebeneath of tipping up the carton and risking fall and damage thereof.
Another object of the invention is to provide control means at the exit end of the machine which permits in simple and effective manner each exiting carton to manipulate such control means effectively to cause the head beam unloading of this carton at the critical time.
A further object of the invention is to provide such control means in a form of a plurality of units successively arranged along the carton exiting path in close enough proximity whereby a first one may be manipulated by the advancing carton and thereafter the second may be manipulated by the further advanced carton while permitting intermediate manipulation of both simultaneously, all to attain successive machine parts operations in a very desirable and most logical order.
In accordance with the present invention a typical embodiment of the elevator head, the controlled operations thereof, and the actions of associated machine sub-assemblies may be embodied together in the machine to perform as follows. A loaded carton may be pushed by hand into the entry end of the machine and it will be abutted against a control on the lowered head beam to cause side rails to be moved in to opposite sides of the carton and then the head beam to be raised out of the path of the carton so that it can move forward toward abutment against the wipe-on tape applicator roller means. After adhesive tape has been applied longitudinally to the forwardly moving loaded carton, preferably medially up and down the leading and trailing end walls and along the opposed edges of the infolded top and bottom side flaps, while the head beam loads the top of the advancing carton, the taped carton arrives at the discharge end section of the machine there successively to trip controls which will raise the head beam from off of the carton top momentarily to unload it while the carton is discharged from the machine. Consequently, the series of loaded cartons exiting from the discharge end of the machine normally will transfer to receiving equipment, such as an end table, without tendency to be tipped or tumbled by otherwise existing head loading of the cartons' back ends.
Powered circuitry and equipment therein are embodied in the machine for performing all of the required operations in properly timed relation, and such may be embodied in a variety of types. For example, if such circuitry and equipment is of an electrical type, motive power therein may be electrical motive means, and controls therein may be photoelectric cells and relay switches responding thereto, or, as may be preferred, the circuitry and equipment may be of pneumatic types as is hereinafter more fully taught.